Civil and Human Rights

Voting Rights Keith supports the rights of all individuals to vote, free of undue burden or harassment. Minnesota has consistently led the nation in voter turnout, without evidence of fraud. This is made possible because of Minnesota’s election laws, which Keith believes should serve as a model for the rest of the country. Keith has introduced legislation to extend Minnesota’s model to the nation, making Election Day voter registration the law of the land. Keith opposes Voter ID requirements, which restrict the ability of thousands to vote, particularly seniors, college students, and minorities. He believes voting is a civil right and has introduced an amendment to enshrine the right to vote in the Constitution.

LGBT Equality Keith is a tireless advocate for equal human and civil rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people. Keith believes in expanding marriage rights and responsibilities to same-sex couples and to have those marriages recognized by other states and by the federal government. He campaigned against the Minnesota Republican effort to insert discrimination into the state Constitution with a marriage-restriction amendment. Keith also supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a bill which protects employees based on their real or perceived sexual orientation. Keith has pushed for Congress to add gender identity to the bill, which would provide additional protections for the rights of thousands of Minnesotans.

Workers’ Rights Collective bargaining is essential to restoring the economic mobility of American workers and rebuilding the middle class. Too many Americans are living in poverty even while working full time, but forming or joining a union levels the playing field. For this reason, Keith has introduced the Employee Empowerment Act, which protects union organizing as a civil right.

Keith and the Progressive Caucus have drawn attention to the problem of wage theft, such as off-the-clock work or denial of overtime, forcing several votes on the issue in Congress and urging President Obama to take executive action. The President did just that, signing an executive order enhancing workplace protections for federal contractors.

Gun Violence Keith has called for the reinstatement of the Assault Weapons Ban, a law that prevented dangerous weapons from falling into the hands of violent criminals.

We can avoid national tragedies by closing gun show loopholes, banning military style assault weapons, and fully supporting the implementation of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. A strong national background check system will ensure that violent individuals, domestic abusers, murderers, or the criminally insane are not able to buy guns.

Keith also believes in limiting the amount of deadly ammunition that guns can hold in a single magazine because there is no justifiable civilian purpose for firing dozens of rounds without stopping.